Why You’re Working Late (and How to Stop)

3 minute read

Upland Admin

Many business executives think content marketing is as simple as writing a few blog posts every week. The reality is that it’s a tough job that requires a blend of analytic chops, research ability, writing skills, and influencing magic.

The best content marketers are journalists, business development leaders, analysts, and logistical masterminds. In other words, content marketing roles package multiple jobs into one title.

Content marketers love what they do, but they’re often overworked. As a relatively new field and business function, however, it can be tough to get extra help in the form of new team members. That’s why you need to make more out of the resources you have on hand.

Here are the three most common reasons that content marketers work long hours—complete with tips on how to develop a more manageable workload.

1. You’re Buried under Endless Project Management

Just use Google Docs or Excel—it’s cheaper!

These famous last words bury content marketers under avalanches of small tasks. The process of managing an editorial strategy takes more than a Google Doc. It is heavily administrative, which often takes away from the time available to spend on strategic tasks like sales enablement, promotional outreach, or in-depth writing.

You need resources to eliminate the administrative tasks that are stopping you from getting things done, instead of adding to them.

2. You’re Chasing Too Many Contacts

Every time you publish a piece of content, you email your team, influencers, syndication partners, and everyone in between. It’s exhausting.

One way to streamline this process is to create a distribution list and automate the process of pinging recipients with new content. A basic email marketing tool like MailChimp or Campaign Monitor will help. You can also work with an engineer to create an API from your blog’s RSS feed to power the tool of your choice.

With less pitching, you’ll free up time to build more distribution relationships and learn from your strategy. In other words, you’ll make more of an impact with much less effort and time.

3. You’re Dealing with Feedback Overload

No matter how you spin it, content will always be subjective, which means that people will always have an opinion—good or bad—about what you write. While feedback and editing are essential to the content marketing process, they can hinder operations as well. A subtle “tweak” here or there can really add up.

Content marketers need to step in and truly own the editorial process. Implement a system for team members to provide feedback, and, whatever you do, always include a disclaimer that recommended changes won’t necessarily be made.

Limit your editorial queue to the core parties necessary: your writer, designer, editor, strategist, and compliance team if necessary. Otherwise, content may take years to see daylight.

Content marketing success is highly dependent on the process that you implement. The more you flex your left brain, the better positioned you’ll be to unleash more creative energy. Automate as much as possible, outsource as much as you can, and position your team to grow. You’ll put an end to your late nights, and, most importantly, your efforts will shine.

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